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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 116 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. I've got to change the light ________________.
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. The light ________________ burned out.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  22. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. squash — to crush
  3. pit — a hole
  4. rash — hasty
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. rash — a series
  7. bulb — for light
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. court — of a king
  10. cold — not warm
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. bulb — for light
  14. drill — a practice
  15. squash — the sport
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. cold — an illness
  18. pit — a fruit stone
  19. drill — the tool
  20. drill — army training
  21. bowl — to roll
  22. bulb — of a plant
  23. court — for sport
  24. pit — in a race

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com